ST. MARY'S, ALASKA-23-year-old Gerald Richardson Minock, the operator of, and the only person on board, a 32-foot tender for Boreal Fisheries, was last heard from at 2300 hours on Tuesday, August 23rd. Alaska State Troopers were notified of the overdue Yukon River tender at 9:30 yesterday.

The boat, an outboard powered Semi-Vee-hull, appeared to be over-loaded the night before, according to a fisherman that made a delivery to him at 21:30. It was observed then that the boat only had approximately six to eight inches of free-board. The weather that night was rainy and windy.

At 10:20 yesterday morning, the Alaska State Trooper Caravan located the vessel overturned and stationary four miles below Boreal Fisheries. Boreal Fisheries is itself 10 miles below St Mary’s on the Yukon River.

Ten boats with thirty searchers began the search for the missing Pilot Station man. The search area reached from Pilot Station to Mountain Village. At 12:45, Wednesday, two hunters reported the discovery of a man, in his twenties, found with a Boreal Fisheries life jacket on. He was found downriver from Mountain Village at the upper end of Thatcher Island. He was taken to the dock in St Mary’s, where troopers took possession of the body.

Minock’s body was identified by next of kin. There was no obvious signs of trauma and alcohol was not identified as a factor in the incident. The State Medical Examiner requested the body be sent to Anchorage for autopsy.